The effect of eight weeks of High-intensity Interval Training on the gene expression of the myogenic regulatory factors MyF5 and myogenin in the skeletal muscle of rats

Abstract

Purpose: Myogenesis plays an important role in the skeletal muscle reconstruction and growth. However, the impact of High-intensity Interval Training (HIIT) on the factors of this process is unknown. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of 8 weeks HIIT on myogenesis main factors, i.e. Myogenic Factor 5)Myf5( and Myogenin in the rat's gastrocnemius muscle.Methods: In this experimental study, sixteen male Wistar rats (at age of 10 weeks, weight= 255 ± 25 gr) were randomly divided into two groups (control (n = 8) and HIIT (n = 8)). HIIT protocol was performed for 40 minutes, three days a week for eight weeks. 48 hours after the last training session, gastrocnemius muscle was extracted and MyF5 and myogenin gene expression were measured by Real Time-PCR. To analyze the data, independent T-test was used.Results: Compared to the control group, MyF5 and myogenin gene expression significantly increased in the experimental group (P˂0.05). Additionally, gastrocnemius muscle weight in training group was significantly higher than the control group (P˂0.01).Conclusion: It seems that HIIT leads to a significant increase in the expression of MyF5, Myogenin, and gastrocnemius muscle weight in rats.

Keywords

• hiit
• myf5
• myogenesis
• myogenin
• real time-pcr